So I’ve finally decided to re-enter the world of higher education. My small town doesn’t have much in the way of creative fields at the local community college, but they do have one thing that stands out– a fairly new program for interior design.
I thought I could get in through Michigan’s No Worker Left Behind Act, as it was listed on the approved programs (considered in “high demand”, much to my surprise, probably because of all of the ‘green initiatives’ taking place. Well, I signed up for NWLB, went in to my ‘orientation’ and found out that it was not on the list.
That slowed me down for a bit, but I decided to go ahead with it anyway. I was actually between Interior Design and Social Work (a somewhat less satisfying substitute for psychology) but felt myself leaning toward design. When I mentioned this to my mother, who at the time was dying of cancer, she said that it was what she always wanted to do.
Something in me just clicked that day. I come from a long line of artists and crafts-people. My mom’s father was a roofer (building trades… see the connection) who enjoyed painting landscapes– mostly log cabins– and still lifes (birds, fish, etc) in his free time– oil on canvas. His ancestors were from Holland where they built ships for the peat moss industry (craftsmen, designers again) until that field dried up and they came to America.
Now my mother telling me that she always wanted to go into the field, something I should have guessed from the numerous remodels, additions and furniture rearrangements I had endured though out my life. It felt like it was my destiny, an affirmation that it was the direction that I should go toward.
I knew that eventually I would have to decide on one thing, become focused and actually chose what program to go into, and stop swaying back and forth from idea to idea, so this was the day that my decision was made. Still not much was done, my living situation was tenuous as was my mother’s health. I started looking at the college website on a regular basis though, keeping the thought fresh in my mind.
Finally one day I was babysitting and using the laptop that my employer/friend had bought with her student aid money, I just decided to make an appointment to talk to an advisor, and very quickly all of a sudden things started to move forward. Unfortunately, my mom’s cancer had spread to her brain and I really couldn’t share with her that I had actually made a move forward in my life (finally, at the ripe old age of 35).
She passed away in June and very soon after, I started classes. I had several transfer credits from my first run in college (about 13 years previous) so I only had to take a couple of computer classes, English and Math (algebra, yikes!) during summer quarter to be ready to take design classes for fall. I made the deans list, despite feeling like I was in a fog much of the quarter, and falling behind on the last chapter of Excel and taking only half credit for most of the work in the last chapter.
Now here I am, taking the intro class, the drafting class and the art history class. Drafting is a technical aspect that I know I need, but is completely foreign and intimidating to me. I’ve never done any drafting before in my life. Midway though the fall quarter, the stress is starting to get to me, I feel a bit like I am treading water, and I can’t wait for this to be all over.
I struggle with my emotions at times, dealing with grief and plunging myself into this gigantic challenge all at once. (Sometimes it’s just what I need, I can’t imagine what it would be like if I didn’t have something to keep me busy, and the babysitting job didn’t last either, due to circumstances beyond my control.)
I must be crazy! But I will press on, the worst that can happen is failure and at that point there is nothing left to do but try again until success is achieved.
I should probably stress, for those who don’t already know that Interior Design is NOT Interior Decorating- anybody can be a decorator, a designer is very similar to an architect. In fact many architects are designers too. But with the degree, there are many other directions you could go. My instructor works in custom cabinetry.
I don’t know yet, what direction I will go, I do know that some things are more interesting to me than others- the art and furniture (I adore antique furniture that might be a direction certainly), staging, interior design journalism, possibility of houseflipping (never having done it I can’t be certain) or real estate, art with an architectural bend (I love installation art, I could see how this could go in that direction), auction houses maybe… so many possibilities swirl in my head.
I have an idea for a gallery/salon using one of the historical houses in my town, that I hope to one day implement. I’m thinking that I would have to make it a non-profit venture (history/education/culture) and learn how to file for grants and so forth to keep it running. On a for profit basis, I’m not sure that the economy of this town could keep it running. It’s a tourist town, so I think we could do some good business in the summer months, and hopefully provide a venue for local artists (something I think is so lacking here despite the abundance of talent and desire). That is my dream, really, and I would love to name it after my Grandpa.
I mentioned it to the guy who runs the custom framing shop when he was a visiting instructor in our class, and he said if I was serious about it, he knew of somebody who was looking to do something similar that I could talk to. The real-ness of such a possibility for my beautiful daydream scared me momentarily, but now I’m thinking that I need to get that information from him.
Maybe I’m finally going somewhere!
Mimi Screams! 